Physics for Kids: Theory of Relativity. Science >> Physics for Kids The theory of relativity is a very complex and difficult subject to understand.
We will just discuss the very basics of the theory here. The theory of relativity is actually two theories that Albert Einstein came up with in the early 1900s. One is called "special" relativity and the other is called "general" relativity. We will talk mostly about special relativity here. You can learn more about two very important aspects of the theory of relativity on this page about the speed of light and time dilation. Special Relativity There are two main ideas that make up Einstein's theory of special relativity. 1. 2.
What does "relative" mean? The first principal listed above is pretty confusing. A Relative Example One example of relativity is to imagine two people on a train playing ping-pong. Now imagine someone standing beside the railroad tracks watching the ping-pong game. The result is that the speed of the ball depends on the "relative" position of the observer. The Theory of Relativity, For Kids - Trending Sideways. So you want to understand the theory of relativity, and you’re a kid?
No problem. Let’s get started. (If you’re a parent looking for some activities to help teach your kid, consider ordering Albert Einstein and Relativity for Kids: His Life and Ideas with 21 Activities and Thought Experiments. And if you’re an adult who just wants to understand relativity, there’s no shame in reading on.) Light Always Moves the Same Speed A long time ago, scientists wanted to figure out how fast the earth was moving through space. Think about it like this. And, of course, if you turned around and ran toward the rain, it would hit you even harder than if you stood still. Back then, scientists thought that light acted like rain drops in a rain storm. And that’s exactly what they did.
The speed of light was the same no matter what. This was very weird. The scientists had discovered that light didn’t act like raindrops or anything else in the universe.
Mass & Weight. Astronomy. Newtons Laws. Energy. Earl Haig Secondary School - Physics Review Lessons. FearOfPhysics.com: See physics in action, get physics homework help. ePhysics: The Physics Site. Nikola Tesla. Why Nikola Tesla was the greatest geek who ever lived. Additional notes from the author: If you want to learn more about Tesla, I highly recommend reading Tesla: Man Out of Time Also, this Badass of the week by Ben Thompson is what originally inspired me to write a comic about Tesla.
Ben's also got a book out which is packed full of awesome. There's an old movie from the 80s on Netflix Instant Queue right now about Tesla: The Secret of Nikola Tesla. It's corny and full of bad acting, but it paints a fairly accurate depiction of his life. The drunk history of Tesla is quite awesome, too. History.com has a great article about Edison and how his douchebaggery had a chokehold on American cinema. Angular Momentum.